Method of bonding the ends of wire ropes



April 26, 1938. F. E. STAHL METHOD OF BONDING THE ENDS OF WIRE ROPES Filed March 17, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet l jive-411v?" FRANK E. STAHL.

Aprii 26,1938. F. E. STAHL I 2,115,649

METHOD OF BONDING THE ENDS 0F WIRE ROPES 1 Filed March 17, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 firnfr R NK E. STAHL Patented Apr. 26, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF BONDING THE. ENDS OF WIRE ROPES 1 Application March 17, 1936, Serial No. 69,341

6 Claims.

My invention relates in general to the bonding of the wires and strands at the end of wire ropes, and in particular to the cutting of the rope into lengths and the subsequent welding of the wires and strands thereof at the ends of such lengths.

Reference is to be had to application Serial No. 69,342, upon Apparatus for bonding the ends of wire ropes which contains subject matter common to this application.

It is well known to those skilled in the art that in all wire rope except that which is initially preformed, the wires and strands will fly apart and become unraveled when the rope is cut through, thus making it necessary, when cutting or splicing such rope, to provide a number of seizings.

Furthermore, when the rope is to have an anchor attached to the extreme outer end thereof, such seizingsobviously cannot be used, because they must be located as near the outer end as possible. Moreover, when such an anchor is to be used, it is important that the end of the rope be maintained at its initial diameter.

The principal object of my invention has been to create a method whereby a wire rope may be held and cut to the desired length without having to provide and to apply seizings to the ends of the rope.

Another object has been to provide a method whereby the individual wires and strands at the end of the rope may be securely bonded together without the use of seizings so that they will not fly apart or become unraveled.

Another object is to provide a method of welding the wires together at the end of the rope and to provide a cover thereat.

My method accomplishes the above results and advantages and may be carried out by any suitable form of apparatus, one form of which is shown in the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, where I show the wire rope broken off it is to be understood that the broken off part is either connected to the reel of wire rope (not shown) or to the severed length, the other end of which has been previously bonded.

In'the drawings:

Fig. l is a fragmentary, perspective view showing a wire rope having its severed end bonded in accordance with my method.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of an apparatus for carrying out my method.

Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, side elevation of the device, showing a transverse, sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary, transverse, sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a similar view taken on line 66 of Fig. 2.

Fig. '7 is a plan view of the apparatus showing 5 a wire rope which has been severed in accordance with my method.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation showing the apparatus in a position to have the ends of the Wire rope Welded.

In Fig. 1, I show the end ID of a length 19 of wire rope IB which has been severed and bonded in accordance with the steps of my invention. As here shown, the ends of the wires and strands have been welded together and a cover I I has been welded over the top, thus providing not only a bond for the strands and wires, but closing the end of the rope, sealing in the hemp cord, if the rope is so provided, and providing an end which is stiff and rigid and one which cannot unravel.

In carrying out my invention by the apparatus shown in Figs. 2 to 8, inclusive, I use a bench vise l2 having a front movable jaw l3 and a rear stationary jaw M. The movable jaw is operated by means of the vise screw I5.

Arranged between the jaws l3 and I4 of the vise are two clamping blocks [6 and two clamping blocks l'l arranged in pairs. The blocks [6 are arranged at that side of the vise which receives the wire rope I8 as it comes from the reel (not shown), and the blocks I! are arranged at the opposite side of the vise jaw for the purpose of clamping that portion of the rope which is to become the severed length IS. The blocks are so proportioned and positioned that a space 20 is provided between them for the accommodation of any suitable mechanical cutting tool, or an oxy-acetylene flame. One of the blocks I6 is pivotally connected to the coacting jaw I? by means of a pivot pin 26, and the other block is likewise pivotally connected to its coacting jaw I d by means of a similar pivot pin 26. (Fig. 6.) Each of these pivot pins is arranged preferably near the bottom of the block and in the central portion thereof, and each is preferably driven into a suitable aperture formed in the block. The pins have their ends protruding beyond the outer surfaces of the blocks and are pivotally disposed in apertures 21 formed in the jaws of the vise. Each of the blocks 16 and H is provided in its; inner working face with a semi-cylindrical groove 33 for the accommodation and clamping of the wire rope. The blocks l6 are loosely connected together by means of a bolt 28, and the blocks II are likewise loosely connected together as for the gauging of its length thereof. the rope has been drawn through the blocks by means of a similar bolt 28. Each of these bolts passes through an aperture 29 in one of the blocks of each pair and into a screwthreaded aperture 30 in the opposite block of the same pair. The head 3| of each of the bolts is disposed in a countersunk aperture 32, the depth of the aperture being so proportioned in relation to the position of the head 3| of the bolt that the blocks of each pair can open slightly so as to permit the free passage of the wire rope therebetween, but cannot be separated from each other far enough to allowthe rope to become disengaged from the grooves 33 and thereby fall out from between the blocks. The adjacent surfaces 2| of the blocks of each pair are so proportioned that there is suflicient clearance between them when the rope is clamped.

It is desirable to provide means for positively separating the blocks I! for the reason that the next length to be severed must enter between them. This is not necessary with the blocks I6, since the rope coming from the reel is always threaded therebetween. In order to accomplish this, one of the blocks I1 is pivotally attached to the vise jaw |3 by means of a screw 36, and the other block I! is likewise pivotally attached to the jaw l4 thereof by means of a similar screw 36. Each of the screws 36 is slidably and rotatably mounted in an aperture 3'! formed in each of the blocks I! and screw threaded to its respective vise jaw. The head 38 of each of these screws is disposed in a countersunk aperture 39 formed in each of the blocks, the depth of which aperture is so proportioned in relation to the length of the screw 36 that there is some space between the bottom of the aperture and the bottom surface of the head of the screw, which will permit some slight lost motion between each of the blocks and its coacting vise jaws. By this arrangement, the blocks I! will not onlybe pivotally mounted but they may be positively separated from each other by the actuation of the vise jaw l3 after the heads 38 have reached the bottoms of the countersunk apertures 39. Such engagement will, furthermore, prevent opening of the vise jaws an undesirable amount, since the screw 28 will limit the opening of the blocks 11. By this construction the end of the rope which is being loosely held by the block l6 may easily enter between the blocks I! when another length of rope is to be severed and bonded.

A stop pin 4| is provided for the blocks l6 and a similar pin 4| is provided for the blocks Each of these pins passes through both of the blocks of each pair and extends a slight distance beyond the outer faces of each block, so as to contact with the upper surfaces of the vise jaws I3 and I4 and thereby act as stops to limit the inward rotation of the blocks upon their pivots, as shown in Figs. 2, 4, and 5.

In carrying out my invention by the use of the apparatus herein shown and described, the vise jaws are opened and the wire rope I8 is threaded through the blocks I6 and also through the blocks H, the rope coming from the reel (not shown) being moved during such threading operation in the direction of the arrows shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The rope is extended on through the blocks until the place where it is desired to sever the rope is located in the space between the pairs of clamping blocks, a trough and stop (not shown) being provided, if desired, for the reception and support of the wire rope as well After l6 and I! the predetermined length, the screw |5 of the vise I2 is used to move the jaw |3 toward the jaw l4 and to thus firmly clamp the wire rope between the coacting blocks l6 and the coacting blocks I1. As hereinbefore stated, the pairs of blocks I6 and I! are separated so as to provide a space 20 therebetween in Which the rope may be severed by any suitable means. A saw, either hand or power operated, may be used to sever the rope, and in some cases it may be necessary, when a saw is used, to provide a slot (not shown) in the vise jaws for the reception thereof. I have found, however, that an oxy-acetylene flame is a very convenient means of severing the rope, not only because it is a most suitable medium for cutting but also because of the fact that such a flame can also be used for welding the strands and wires of the rope together at the rope ends and in the formation of the covers While any suitable means may be employed to sever the rope, it must be of such nature that the initial diameter of the rope will be substantially maintained. After the wire rope has been clamped by the two interspaced pairs of blocks, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, it is ready to be severed in the formation of the length I9. When the rope is severed by an oxy-acetylene flame, gobs 42 of solidified metal will usually be formed on the severed ends of the rope, as

shown in Fig. '7.

After the wire rope has been severed, as shown in Fig. 7, the screw l5 of the vise I2 is loosened slightly and the workman then grasps the portions of the rope extending outwardly from each of the pairs of blocks [6 and I1, and by bearing down upon these portions causes the pairs of blocks l6 and IT to be rotated, the blocks |6 rotating about the pivot pins 26, and the blocks l1 rotating about the pivot screws 36. The blocks are rotated through substantially 90, which will bring the ends of the two portions of the rope above the upper edge of the jaws |3 and I4 of the vise, as shown in Fig. 8. These severed ends will also project slightly beyond the pairs of blocks l6 and I1, in the position shown in Fig. 8. The workman now, by the use of the oxy-acetylene flame, will burn 01f the gobs 42 from each of the rope ends, thus making a substantially even end. The workman will then also, by the use of this flame, weld together the wires and strands of the upturned ends and will also deposit metal upon such ends, thereby forming the covers shown in Figs. 1 and 8. In such welding and in the formation of the cover, the wires and strands of the rope are welded together so as to make the extreme end of the rope one'single integral'piece, so that when the welded rope is released from the clamping action of the pairs of blocks I6 and H, the wires and strands cannot become unraveled or fly apart.

It is to be understood that after the rope has been severed and before the ends thereof are welded, the jaws of the vise are loosened just sufliciently to permit the operator to rotate the pairs of blocks 16 and I! about their pivots, but not enough to release the clamping action of the pairs of blocks upon the wire rope to such a degree as to permit the rope to become unraveled.

After the severed ends of rope have been welded, as above described, the vise jaws are released and the pairs of clamping blocks are again rotated on their pivots inreverse direction so as to bring them to their initial positions where the stop pins 4| will contact with the tops of the vise jaws. The length of rope |9 (covered at each end) is now removed from between the blocks I1. If the jaws have not been sufiiciently released so as to permit the free passage of the rope between the blocks, the jaw I3 is further opened. As this jaw is opened, it will separate the blocks ll because of their attachment to the jaws by the pivot screws 36, and thus permit the free passage of the rope therebetween. The wire rope I8 coming from the reel (not shown), with its end covered, is now moved along engaged between the blocks l6 and between the semi-cylindrical recesses of the blocks 11. The rope is continued on until the end engages with the stop (not shown) for the gauging of the next length I9, whereupon the vise jaw I3 is again clamped in position, thus securely holding the rope between the jaws l8 and I1 ready to be severed at the place in the space 20 between the pairs of blocks, as hereinbefore described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

l. A method of bonding the ends of wire ropes, comprising the clamping of the rope between pivotally mounted blocks on each side of the portion to be severed, severing the rope by means of an oxyacetylene flame, then rotating the blocks so as to position the severed ends for convenient welding while firmly holding them in said blocks, and then welding together the wires and strands of the rope at the severed ends independently of the step of severing the rope.

2. A method of bonding the ends of wire rope, comprising clamping spaced-apart portions of the rope on each side of and closely adjacent to the place where it is to be severed, then severing the rope between the clamped portions while substantially maintaining its initial diameter, then moving the portions at the severed ends out of axial coincidence and into positions for convenient welding, while maintaining the clamping action upon such portions, and then subsequently welding together the wires and strands of each of the severed ends by steps performed subsequently to the cutting of the rope.

3. A method of bonding the ends of wire rope, comprising clamping spaced-apart portions of the rope on each side of and closely adjacent to the place where it is to be severed, applying an oxyacetylene flame tothe rope between the clamped portions, thereby severing the rope, then moving the portions at the severed ends out of axial coincidence and into positions for convenient welding, while maintaining the clamping action upon such portions, and then subsequently applying said flame to each of the severed ends of the rope, thereby welding together the strands on each of such severed ends.

4. A method of bonding the ends of wire rope, comprising clamping spaced-apart portions of the rope on each side of and closely adjacent to the place where it is to be severed, applying an oxyacetylene flame to the rope between the clamped portions, thereby severing the rope, then moving the portions at the severed ends out of axial coincidence and into positions for convenient welding, while maintaining the clamping action upon such portions, then again applying said flame to the ragged ends of the wires at the severed surfaces of the rope ends, thereby smoothing the ends, and then subsequently applying said flame to each of said severed ends of the rope, thereby welding together the strands on each of such severed ends, by steps performed subsequently to the cutting of the rope.

5. A method of bonding the ends of wire rope, comprising clamping spaced-apart portions of the rope on each side of and closely adjacent to the place where it is to be severed, then severing the rope between the clamped portions while substantially maintaining its initial diameter, then moving the portions at the severed ends out of axial coincidence and into positions for convenient welding, while maintaining the clamping action upon such portions, then subsequently welding the ends of the wires together at each end of the rope by steps performed subsequently to the cutting of the rope, and simultaneously therewith, covering each of the severed ends by depositing weld metal thereon.

6. A method of bonding the ends of wire rope, comprising clamping spaced-apart portions of the rope on each side of and closely adjacent to the place where it is to be severed, then severing the rope between the clamped portions while substantially maintaining its initial diameter, then moving the portions at the severed ends out of axial coincidence and into positions for convenient welding, while maintaining the clamping action upon such portions, then smoothing off the ragged ends of the wires on the severed surfaces at the rope ends, then subsequently welding the ends of the wires together by steps performed subsequently to the cutting of the rope, and simultaneously therewith covering each of said severed ends by depositing weld metal thereon.

FRANK E. STAHL. 

